Implications of 2776: New Basic Education Funding Formula For School Superintendents and Board Members

1. Implications of 2776: New Basic Education Funding FormulaFor School Superintendents and Board Members Fall 2010

2. Purpose • To provide school superintendents and others a walk through of the new funding structure that will be implemented in September 2011.

3. Walk Away Questions • As we go through this presentation, we encourage each of you to consider how this will affect your district’s: • Budgeting (commencing January 2011). • Communications with the community. • Negotiations with bargaining groups. • Decisions and conversations about resource equity. • Conversations with your legislators.

4. How did we get to SHB 2776? Background/Overview

5. 2261 – The Beginning • SHB 2261 was passed in the 2009 Legislative Session. • Established workgroups charged with making various recommendations to the Legislature concerning state funding for public education.

6. Legislature and Governor OSPI and/or OFM Work Groups Quality Education Council (QEC) • State Superintendent • Governor Appointee • SBE Member • PESB Member • AGOAC Member • DEL Director • Legislators (8) Professional Educator Standards Board State Board of Education

7. SHB 2776 • Establishes a new funding method based upon prototypical school format. • It does not provide any improvement in the funding amounts initially. • Effective September 1, 2011.

8. Funding Structure - Existing • The current funding provides high level formula staff units solely at the district level. • Certificated Instructional 46/1000. • Certificated Administrative 4/1000. • Classified Staff Units 1 per 58.75 student FTE. • No additional detail by job classification exists.

9. 2776 - Functional Structure - NEW • 2776 breaks out the funding structure into the three major functional areas of a school district: • Schools. • Districtwide Support. • Administration.

10. This funding is generated based upon student enrollment by grade, and is intended to provide funding for the operation of schools. School Based Funding

11. Concepts/Technical Terms • Prototypical Schools. • Baseline Values.

12. What is Prototypical School? • Prototypical school is a fixed theoretical school size that is used for modeling purposes. • Replaces the current paradigm of a staff ratio per 1,000 students. • As adopted in 2776, it is fully scalable. • I.E. As enrollment increases or decreases from prototypical size, the staff units change proportionately.

13. 2776 - Prototype as a Basis • Formulas for school funding are based upon a prototypical school and a prototypical class size. • Formula class size assumptions are different based upon grade and subject. • The formula considers planning time in determination of funded classroom teachers.

14. 2776 - Prototypical School Size • In reality, school configurations vary widely and are not always consistent with the Prototype model. • Funding is generated based on the grade level reported rather than a school’s classification. • When 6th grade is part of the middle school, the 6th grade students generate staff at the elementary funding level. • When 9th grade is part of the middle school, the 9th grade students continue to generate staff at the high school funding level.

15. 2776 - Class Size Assumption in Formula

16. Class Size to Teacher Conversion • Converting the funding assumption for class size to formula generated teachers is complex and is based upon standard state assumptions about: • Student instructional hours per day. • Teacher planning time. • Instructional workload of each teacher.

17. Resulting Planning Time • Assumed Teacher Day: • Elementary School 5.6 Hours. • Middle and High School 6 Hours. • Assumed Planning Time • 13% for Elementary = 45 minutes. • 17% for Secondary = 60 minutes.

18. 2776: School Level Other Staffing

19. 2776: CTE and Skills Centers

20. This funding is generated at the district level without regard to the prototypical school model or grade level. District Level

21. 2776: Districtwide Support

22. 2776: Central Administration • Central Administration is 5.3% of staffing units generated as K-12 Teachers, School Level Staffing, and Districtwide Support. • The Central Administration staffing is not generated on poverty enhancement, Lab Science enhancement, AP/IB enhancement, CTE, Skills Centers, or categorical program staffing.

23. 2776: MSOC (formerly known as NERC)

24. MSOC • Maintenance, Supplies, and Operating Costs. • Initially established based upon district information from the 2007-08 school year. Values are to be adjusted for inflation. • MSOC values for Lab Science, CTE Exploratory, CTE Preparatory, and Skills Centers will be defined in future omnibus appropriations acts. • Transition is not cost neutral because districts have different proportions of K-3/4 to all other grades.

25. The new formulas are based upon a staffing assumption for a program. The current funding structure provides $$ per student without conveying any staffing assumptions. Other Instructional Funding

26. Categorical Program Current Funding • Current funding is based on dollars only. • No detail about staffing or service delivery is provided. • Difficult to determine what the legislature is actually funding.

27. 2776: Categorical Programs • Calculated hours above are converted to staffing units for funding purposes. • Assumes staff are allocated as teachers. • Initially to be funded using statewide staff mix factor, but could be converted to using district staff mix in the future. • Designed to be cost neutral.

28. Categorical Programs • The Funding Remains Categorical Allocations: • Funds must be used for those programs. • Allocations only; districts can design program structure to meet student needs within governing rules and statutes.

29. Categorical Programs • LAP: Poverty and Bilingual concentration factors are not continued. • Hold harmless provided to those districts in lieu of continuation of that formula component. • Current groups headed by OSPI are developing new funding formula proposals for programs such as LAP and TBIP.

30. 2776: Special Education • Special Education funding formula did not change.

31. Small Schools/Districts. Enrollment. Salary Assumptions. Accountability. Other Funding Areas

32. Small Schools and Districts • All districts should be funded using the same prototypical school models. A small school and small district allocation will be articulated with the same ratios for staff units and non-employee cost allocations as currently exists. Districts will receive the greater of the two allocations. • Formula Blending – As the new funding formulas are phased in, there should be a constant check to assess the points at which regular prototype school funding provides equal or greater funding. • Formula Integration – Small schools must continue to be considered in ongoing implementation discussions, such as Core 24 and local levy work group. • Consider incentives or policy for small high schools to increase student participation in internet or distant learning programs.

33. Funded Student Enrollment • The district’s funding allocations will be calculated based on districtwide grade level enrollment within the prototypical grades. Exceptions: High Poverty Schools • Enrollment and free and reduced-price lunch percentages shall be calculated at the school level. • SHB 2776: The omnibus appropriations act will define an average class size for schools where more than 50% of the students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. • Class size reductions in high poverty schools have not yet been established. • Changes for school level enrollment will require changes to current data collections.

34. Salary Assumptions • Initial funded salaries will not change. • The staff in prototypical school categories are grouped as certificated instructional staff, certificated administrative staff, and classified staff for salary purposes. • Future salary changes are dependent upon future legislation. The compensation workgroup is addressing the structure of compensation.

35. For Allocation Purposes Only • SHB 2776 states the distribution formula shall be for allocation purposes only. Nothing requires school districts to maintain a particular classroom teacher to student ratio or other funded staff to student ratio. • Exception: Learning Assistance, Special Education, etc., and other categorical funds continue to be restricted for use in programs.

36. Accountability • The new funding model will require the following comparisons: • Actual district staffing practices to the funded staff units by school and district level. • Actual district expenditures to funded levels. • These comparisons can be used to inform future policy and legislative decisions for funding level changes. • These comparisons shall be available on a public website and are required of OSPI and school districts.

37. What comes next? Looking Forward

38. Policy Areas Ahead • SHB 2776 provides several legislative intent areas that are not yet developed. • These areas include: • “Adequate” Staffing Intent Language. • Poverty Enhancements. • Lab Science Class Ratio. • Advanced Placement/International Baccalaureate. • Implementation for these areas requires future decisions about funding policies.

39. Transition of Formula: Hold Harmless • SHB 2776 contains legislative intent language that funding shall not be decreased below current levels. • Per-pupil basic education funding. • Hold harmless calculations, if any, are expected to be performed at the aggregate school district level. • Intent language does not bind future legislative action.

40. 2776: Build Out • Legislation targets ending values for MSOC and K-3 class size. • Establishes a poverty enhancement for schools with FRPL >50%; however, does not implement.

41. How Are New Resources Phased-in Under SHB 2776?

42. Learning Assistance Program Technical Working Group LAP Technical Working Group will identify: • Best practice programs and services that research has shown to be effective for the instruction and support of low-achieving students, specifically in the content areas of reading/language arts and mathematics. • Best practice programs and services for the support of high school students who are at-risk of not meeting state and local graduation requirements. • An appropriate state-level funding structure. • An appropriate system to evaluate the effectiveness of the LAP. • Barriers or capacity issues that hinder implementation of the LAP program.

43. Transitional Bilingual Instructional Program Technical Working Group TBIP Technical Working Group will identify: • Research based programs and services that effectively support the language acquisition and academic needs of ELLs. • Identify appropriate outcomes and measures that identify students progress while in program and after they transition out of TBIP. • An appropriate state-level funding structure. • Identify appropriate options for funding enhancements (high poverty districts or districts with multiple languages). • Barriers or capacity issues that hinder implementation of programs for English language learners.

44. OSPI - Implementation Timeline Tools & Training • A projection model is available on OSPI’s website to project the new funding model at the school and district level. • OSPI is providing training throughout the state on the structure and implications of the new funding model. • The model and other 2776 materials are on our website at: www.k12.wa.us/safs/INS/2776/2776.asp

45. SHB 2776 implements a dramatically new funding formula that will drive the funding discussions around K-12 in the years ahead. Full implementation will require annual funding improvements based upon future legislative policy decisions. Conclusion

46. Questions & Answers

47. Brief Model Demo A live walk through of beta models to: • Gain a working understanding of the new funding model. • Perform funding projections for your districts/schools using the new funding algorithm. • Meet the requirements under ESHB 2261 to post school building expenditure information. • These models are available on the School Apportionment website under the SHB 2776 Link on the left margin.

48. Where to Find SHB 2776 Information http://www.k12.wa.us/safs/INS/2776/2776.asp SHB 2776 Funding Model